This fourth episode of Masters of Sex in season 3 was a mixed bag of emotions for me. Watching Virginia deal with her worries about Henry off at war in the jungle, Libby sorting her feelings and Bill acting like he’s in a completely different world from everyone else was very entertaining and made it one of my favourite episodes of the series. At times I wanted to laugh and other times I was ready to cry.
I thought it was hilarious to watch Bill throughout the episode reading a book on how to be a better friend. Though he was reading it, I’m not sure he was fully understanding the concept of what the writer was saying. For example, he read that it’s important to show others that their needs are important to him. Somehow he interprets this as buying Virginia an expensive fur coat. It was a sweet gesture but it was overshadowed by Virginia’s constant worry for Henry’s well being. Bill was trying to do the right thing but he was falling short on that. What he should have actually been doing to show Virginia how important she really is to him, is listening to her and acknowledging that she’s having a tough time. Even Betty was more aware of what Virginia was dealing with. I just love Betty’s interactions with Bill! Her comedic one-liners that seem to outsmart Bill when it comes to dealing with personal matters, are some of my favourite moments in the show. By the end of the episode I would say that Bill learned from the book and from what Betty said to him but the question is was he too late? It’s possible that Dan Logan beat Bill to the punch.
I’m undecided on what to think about Dan. Virginia kept referring to his charm and I’m wondering if he’s putting on a sympathetic act to get closer to her. I’m hoping that it’s not an act as it would be great to see Dan turn out to be a good guy but I have a suspicion that he’s nothing but trouble. Time will tell, but in the meantime he was able to somewhat reassure Virginia that Henry will be alright.
Last week’s episode had me feeling bad for Tessa but this week we saw that she is becoming more self destructive. After what happened between her and Matt I was surprised that she was even talking to the guy, let alone calling him her boyfriend. I know that would be a shock to discover that your mother was having an affair with someone that you considered as family, but the road that she seems to be going down is only going to end up hurting herself. I’m looking forward to the moment when she confronts Virginia about her relationship with Bill. Mainly because I sometimes wonder what Virginia believes she is doing with Bill.
One thing that this show seems to do a lot is skip over details. Sometimes if you're not careful you can miss things completely. For example, in last week’s episode it was my understanding that Barton didn’t want to leave the University to work at Bill’s practice. Next thing I know Betty makes a comment about how Barton wasn't in the office today. That’s an easy thing to miss and you could end up a little lost. That being said I’m glad that Barton is back in the show more. It’s a very compelling storyline to follow knowing that being in that day and age it would have been extremely difficult to come out as a homosexual. It’s a very emotional and hard story to watch but I’m glad this show is not shying away from it. One thing that I didn’t understand was Margaret’s new relationship. We were led to believe that they’re living together and are a couple. The end of the episode had me thinking, what was that about? Did anyone else think that?
I enjoyed watching this episode, titled Undue Influence. It was great to see another slow paced episode compared to those episodes that just fly through the months. I’m waiting to see if Libby will ever decide that her relationship with Bill isn’t enough for her anymore. Do you think that Libby will ever leave Bill?
About the Author - Alexandra
Alexandra is an avid TV, film, and music fan from Canada. She attended film school and was a camera operator for a local sports show. Growing up she watched shows like Due South, Pretender, X-files, Early Edition, and Frasier. Her favourite shows are Bates Motel, The Mentalist, and The Closer. Alexandra will be reviewing Proof, The Whispers and Masters of Sex.
